notice to quit

TAZ

i have been given notice to quit by my landlord of nearly 9 years, he is selling up. there are a few question i would like help with.
firstly he has given me notice so does that mean i stop paying rent to him on the day i move out, rather than at the end of notice had i given him the notice IYSWIM

i was actually in the process of decorating and replacing carpets that had become worn etc so should i finish doing that or leave him to do it and let him keep the bond of £150 .in all the time we have been here he has only ever replaced the boiler and that was with a second hand one, so he really has had a lot of money out of us for very little out lay.
he IS been really good aboout trying to help us find somewhere esle he has given me a lovely referance and has said have i not found somewhere to go by the quit date he will roll the tenancy on week by week, but the thing that did upset me was 3 years ago i asked him to paint the front of the house and he said he would send someone and they never turned up, (we are not ones to keep pushing) yet when he came to tell me he was selling, on tuesday, on the wednesday the decorators where there and did the job in a day

Tassotti

Are you on a fixed AST or a periodic AST?

TAZ

the original tenancy was for 12 months and its just been rolling since so not sure

Tassotti

okay, so it is now a periodic tenancy.

You should have been given a Section 21 (4) (a) Notice.

A minimum of two months notice is required and the day on which the notice expires must be the last day of a period of the tenancy. The period of a tenancy depends on how often the rent is paid. Thus, if the rent is paid monthly, then the period of the tenancy is one month. In order to find out what day is the last day of the period in a particular tenancy it will be necessary to refer to the original fixed term tenancy. The periodic tenancy begins immediately after the fixed term expires. E.g. If the period of the tenancy is monthly and if the first day of the current period is 3rd March then the last day of that period would be the 2nd April and so a notice served during the current period would need to be completed so as to expire on the last day of a period after a further two months (i.e. 2nd June).

You will need to pay rent up to the leaving day.

Hope this helps

Tass

TAZ

so even tho he wants me to leave asap i will still have to pay rent til the end of september?

i was thinking that would be the case if i gave notice but because he wants me out i thought it would be just until i move.
i will have a problem then, cos i get HB and will need an overlap for HB payments and i am not sure if they will do it.

Tassotti

okay...I was posting the LL's legal obligations of what he has to do...You legally have to give one month's notice.

You obviously need to find somewhere else to live, and it may take some time. I was just pointing out that the LL cannot MAKE you leave ASAP.

However, if you come to a mutual agreement on a moving out date (get it in writing), then you will only have to pay rent up to and including the day you leave.

Not sure on the HB issue

TAZ

Tassotti wrote:

okay...I was posting the LL's legal obligations of what he has to do...You legally have to give one month's notice.

You obviously need to find somewhere else to live, and it may take some time. I was just pointing out that the LL cannot MAKE you leave ASAP.

However, if you come to a mutual agreement on a moving out date (get it in writing), then you will only have to pay rent up to and including the day you leave.

Not sure on the HB issue

i think this may be how he works it as he does want to sell soon, still wondering what will happen re updating carpets etc, do you think that if i didn't replace the one we have removed (was gonna buy new next week) he will just take it as wear and tear after all it has been 9 years. there are a few little things also that will need sorting such as the back door been warped(he was told but again was sending someone round to sort it)

Tassotti

Deposits are tricky and delicate situations. I am a LL, and if I had a property returned to me with no carpet, I would definitely be looking at holding some of the deposit money.

But how much.....?? That is the big question.. If the carpet was new when you first moved into the property, I would charge for the cost of a new one. If a few years old, then a percentage would be worked out. Very grey area.

What warped the back door? Weather? That's hardly your fault and you informed him about it. You shouldn't lose any money over this.

clutton_2

"" If the carpet was new when you first moved into the property, I would charge for the cost of a new one. ""

i hope perhaps tassotti has misread this - this poster has lived there for 9 years !! i would have thought that a new carpet was well overdue and should be fair wear and tear and that the landlord should bear the cost of replacement !!!

the landlord cannot get you out without a court order - even if he has given you the correct notice (as tassotti helpfully explained), and even if you have agreed a date.

Don't move till you have somewhere else to go. I am sure that since he thinks you have been such a good tenant, that he will not want to see you homeless. Talk to him, but, know your rights as well. If you feel uncomfortable doing this, there is a private tenants officer at your local council housing department who can help you.

good luck

ginger_nuts

will the landlord not sell with a sittting tennant .

clutton_2

a mortgage lender will not lend unless there is a Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement in place, or unless the house is empty (vacant possession)